Mavs Suspend West For ‘Detrimental Conduct’

DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) – Dallas Mavericks guard Delonte West has been suspended for “conduct detrimental to the team’’ after a late Monday locker room incident in which the guard “cut it loose,’’ according to a source.

“Cut it loose’’ would seem to be a polite way to describe an action so negative that Mavs coach Rick Carlisle said was obligated to announce the suspension shortly after the team’s 123-104 preseason home-opening win over Houston. Carlisle neither described the incident nor specified a timetable for West’s return.

West participated in the game, playing 17 minutes (scoring two points with two assists). It is not known if playing time is associated with his locker room behavior, but he is part of a crowded backcourt in which newcomers Darren Collison and O.J. Mayo start ahead of him. Younger players Dominique Jones and Jared Cunningham played most of the fourth-quarter minutes as the backcourt combo in sealing the win.

The veteran West has been forthcoming about his bipolar disorder, which he manages with the help of medication. For the most part, fan-favorite Delonte has been a positive for Dallas — and cited by Carlisle as such — in part due to his openness about his hard-knocks background.